Katie Leath is dedicated to improving health through clear, effective communication. With more than a decade in public health and communications, she has built deep expertise in health literacy and plain language.
As director of the UAMS Center for Health Literacy (CHL), Katie leads the Center’s work to make health information more readable, understandable, and actionable. She oversees the development of award-winning materials, training for health professionals and students, and consultation on health literacy and plain language best practices. Katie also serves as communications lead for the Arkansas Prevention Research Center for Women’s Health, UAMS’ CDC-funded Prevention Research Center. In this role, she leads efforts to share the center’s research, resources, opportunities, and impact with partners and the public.
Beyond UAMS, Katie supports health literacy and plain language efforts at the national and state levels. She serves on the board of the Center for Plain Language, where she leads the judging process for its annual ClearMark Awards, which recognize excellence in plain language across North America. She is also the Region 6 Coordinator for the U.S. Health Literacy Association and chair of the Partnership for Health Literacy in Arkansas.
Before joining CHL, Katie worked at the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement, where she supported a range of projects through roles in administration, project management, communication, and research. Katie earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing with a minor in graphic design from the University of Central Arkansas. She graduated with honors from UAMS with a master of public health degree and from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with a master’s degree in applied communication studies.
When she is not at work, Katie is a soccer mom and enjoys gardening and spending time with her family and friends at the lake.